We Asked AI to Rewrite “Hotel California” by the Eagles – Take a Look at the Results

Photo: The Eagles | By Alex Hopper, American Songwriter | The Eagles’ “Hotel California” features some of the most vivid imagery in music history. Right from the beginning of the song, you immediately become a wandering cowboy in a hazy desert, desperately trying to find civilization and stumbling upon a towering hotel.

Do your eyes deceive you? Is it something out of a dream? Even as the song hits its final notes, those questions remain unanswered. The line You can check out any time you like / But you can never leave makes the listener wonder if anything they heard was true but those doubts are quickly quieted by a hypnotizing guitar solo.

It’s the sonic equivalent of a mirage.

“Hotel California” is a masterclass in songwriting hosted by Don Felder, Don Henley, and Glenn Frey. It is such a singular pursuit, it’s unlikely anyone will ever be able to create something that holds a candle to it.

But what about a robot?

We tasked Chat GPT with creating a new version of “Hotel California.” Did they measure up to the Eagles’ original? You tell us.

A weary wanderer, seeking a destination…

AI took the basic idea of the song – a hotel that is more than it seems – and created new lyrics around it. The program switched up the rhyme scheme but, has a similar cadence to the Eagles’ version.

On a solitary path, beneath the gentle moon’s glow,
A weary wanderer, seeking a destination to know.
In a realm of shadows, a towering hotel stands,
Its eerie presence entices, casting enchantment’s strands.

AI’s version of the song reads more like a children’s story than the classic rock masterpiece the Eagles delivered in 1976. You can almost hear a mother reading the lines to a child before bedtime. The entire rewritten version plays a little lighter than the original. The Eagles managed to make their song markedly eerie. AI’s feels more magical than haunting.

Welcome to a realm misplaced, where mystic charms reside,
A haven or a prison? Truth’s essence remains untied.
Mirrors hold concealed tales, walls whisper secrets veiled,
Guests arrive burdened, lost within their masks unveiled.

AI used the Eagles’ song as a template for its own version. But, what happens if you prompt the technology to write its own song with a similar theme without mentioning “Hotel California?” Things get far more elementary.

In the desert, hot and dry,
A mirage appeared, way up high.
A hotel, magical and grand,
In the middle of the golden sand
> > > > > > > > >
Read the rest of this futuristic article here, with videos:
https://americansongwriter.com/we-asked-ai-to-rewrite-hotel-california-by-the-eagles-take-a-look-at-the-results/
Photo: The Eagles | https://www.facebook.com/EaglesBand/